Lightning, Storms Cause Power Outages

July 16, 1986

Lightning, thunderstorms and some high winds struck the Chicago area Tuesday night, causing power failures in far northern suburbs and on Chicago`s lakefront. Thunderstorms moved through the Chicago area from the northwest to the southeast from about 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. lasting about 45 minutes in any one location. Between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. temperatures dropped from 84 degrees at O`Hare International Airport to 72. The National Weather Service received reports of downed trees and power lines in McHenry, Wonder Lake, Richmond and Hebron. Commonwealth Edison Co. said about 15,000 homes were temporarily without power, mostly in northern suburbs such as Crystal Lake, Libertyville, Waukegan, Lake Zurich, Mundelein and McHenry. Of those, almost 10,000 of the affected homes were in McHenry, said Frank Clark, Edison spokesman. Scattered power failures occurred on the city`s North Side.